Let’s just picture one day you wake up and come up with a silly sketch.

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“Haha, funny.”

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So you decide to shoot it and edit it along with your friends.

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“Great work, guys!”

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And you publish it on TikTok.

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“Hey, everyone, here’s my new video!”

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“Oh, it’s out on YouTube, too!”

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And, before you know it, each format stacks up over 30 million views.

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Now, you’ve seen moderate success in the past, but nothing like this. This is true viral content. People ask for more. Your older videos get a new audience. You’re becoming a sensation.

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So, a new question looms over you and your team (whose name, Cheese Parade, is establishing itself as a household name).

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What’s next?

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Should you replicate the content that made you viral? Or should you stick to your original plan of doing sketches you’re passionate about?

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The viral temptation

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So, Cheese Parade is at a crossroads.

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On the one hand, going viral is, in a way, the end goal of the project. Increased visibility, a surge in followers, lucrative sponsorship deals. Making money out of a passion.

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On the other hand, virality may seem like a prison for creators. It casts a shadow over every other video (“Why didn’t this work?”) and sets expectations for what’s to come.

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The very nature of viral content is unpredictable and usually unsustainable. What captures attention today may fade into obscurity tomorrow.

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To add insult to injury, Cheese Parade had its audience asking for more. It wasn’t just in-house pressure, but it was also coming from outside the house.

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Should they not give people what they want?

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The sketch strategy

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Cheese Parade made a decision.

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They chose to focus on creating the sketches they wanted. Something that puts their ability for humor and storytelling on full display.

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But not without capitalizing on the success.

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Cheese Parade followed Balloon Boys up with three other videos with the same concept but sandwiched them with new, original content. And since those three, Balloon Boys has only been brought back once.

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Simply following up on Balloon Boys with no other prospects would have them chasing success that might simply have been lucky.

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They kept creating stand-alone sketches based on random things that tickled their creativity. Even the follow-up Balloon Boys sketches were just loosely based on the original and took the story to new places, instead of just being a replica.

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Unlike one-hit wonders chasing viral fame, they chose a more sustainable approach: building a loyal audience through consistent, quality content.

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Nurturing community engagement

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Cheese Parade's strategy turned to putting the focus on community engagement. 

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If you’re going to do what you truly want, independent of what the algorithm wants, you need a solid audience that keeps your viewership afloat. Otherwise, you’d be screaming into the void.

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So Cheese Parade decided to go all out. Beyond likes and shares, they prioritized finding a balance between what they wanted to create and what their loyal followers wanted to see.

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So if they have three ideas they love equally, they’ll probably end up choosing the one their audience would love or be shocked by the most.

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This loyal-following approach is reminiscent of comedy passion projects like TV show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, which has garnered an unstoppable fandom despite going against the media current.

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This strategy strengthens their fan base and separates them from the unpredictability of online trends. 

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Cheese Parade understood that cultivating a true, dedicated audience was their way of achieving a sustainable foundation for long-term success.

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The path forward

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Cheese Parade has committed to making original, innovative, and unpredictable sketch comedy the cornerstone of its content strategy.

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They prioritized authenticity, creativity, storytelling, and community engagement over the temptation of instant virality. 

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Viral success may be fleeting, but genuine artistic expression and audience connection have higher odds of lasting.

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Sure, this is a risk. They could face months of failure. But they’re carving out a distinct identity in the TikTok sea that, hopefully, sets them up for long-term success.

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They keep stacking up hundreds of thousands of views, so they’ll probably be fine.

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Here’s to creativity!

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And if you’d like to learn more about Cheese Parade’s journey, check out this week’s episode of Break The Internet, featuring its founder, Scott Bigos!

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